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Arsenal prevail on penalties against gutsy Crystal Palace to reach League Cup semi-finals
The pursuit of silverware is never straightforward, and especially not for Arsenal, but even by their standards this was a particularly stressful and fraught way of winning a League Cup quarter-final. To think, only a few weeks ago the club were accused by many observers of being boring to watch.
Boring? What Mikel Arteta would give now for a boring, straightforward victory. How he must crave a night without the jaw-clenching anxiety that gripped him here, as his players took a late lead and then surrendered it even later, before finally defeating Crystal Palace after a remarkably high-quality penalty shoot-out.
“I have watched many penalty shoot-outs in my life and I cannot remember seeing so many well-taken penalties,” said Palace manager Oliver Glasner.
After 15 consecutive successful strikes, it was poor Maxence Lacroix who missed the decisive effort in sudden death. The Palace centre-back was already in the midst of a painful night, having scored an own goal in the 80th minute, and his tame penalty – saved by Kepa Arrizabalaga – made it even worse. “There is nobody to blame,” said Glasner in defence of his player.
In the end, it felt like a cruel way for Palace to lose. Glasner’s team are exhausted and drained by their brutal fixture schedule but they remain the most awkward of opponents. No big team enjoys playing against the Austrian’s ultra-organised side, and Arsenal certainly did not enjoy this latest high-stress encounter. For spells of the second half, Palace were better.
The overriding emotion for Arsenal was one of delight, as one would expect after a thrilling shoot-out victory. Arteta beamed afterwards, as he understandably made the point that his team would have won the game far more easily if they had taken their chances in the first half. “We’re in the semi-final, it’s where we wanted to be,” he smiled. “The margin should have been much bigger.”
When the heart rate settles and the post-match euphoria subsides, though, the Arsenal manager will find plenty of reasons to be concerned by the events of the final minutes of this game. Not for the first time in recent weeks, Arsenal’s defenders lost their composure under pressure. “We conceded in a couple of games in the last minute and so that is something we have to improve and focus on,” admitted Kepa.
Against Aston Villa they lost the game with the final kick, and then against Wolverhampton Wanderers they conceded in stoppage time. Here, they were just a few seconds from a 1-0 victory when Marc Guéhi capitalised on their nervousness.
Arteta will hope their current defensive troubles are simply a result of the ongoing absence of Gabriel Magalhães, their injured centre-back. Gabriel is their most resilient and physical defender, and it is notable that these recent late goals have stemmed from crosses and penalty-box chaos. Gabriel’s presence has unquestionably been missed.
No one at Arsenal will ever claim that the League Cup is a top priority, especially in this advanced phase of Arteta’s tenure, but that is not to say they do not crave success in this competition. Arsenal, after all, have not lifted this trophy since 1993. Such a wait is far too long for a club of their stature and ambition.
It could also be argued that Arsenal really should be winning this year’s version, given the amount of high-class players at Arteta’s disposal. Indeed, it spoke volumes of Arsenal’s depth that Arteta could make eight changes from Saturday’s victory at Everton and still field a team packed full of international stars. He may do so again in the semi-final against Chelsea.
In the first half, the quality of these players was clear for all to see. Arsenal were totally dominant, creating a steady flow of chances, and could easily have scored two or three before the break. Only the brilliance of Walter Benítez, the Palace goalkeeper, kept his team in the game as Noni Madueke and Gabriel Jesus both went close.
These are extraordinarily challenging days for Palace, who have been buffeted with a grim relentlessness by the fixture list. This was their seventh match in December, with one more still to come, and there have been signs in recent games that Glasner’s players are understandably beginning to run out of gas. It certainly felt that way in the first half, when Arsenal registered 12 shots and enjoyed almost 80 per cent of possession.
But Palace recovered impressively after the break, controlling the game for a lengthy spell and almost taking the lead through Adam Wharton. It forced Arteta to summon his most trusted players from the bench, with Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka helping to swing the momentum back in Arsenal’s favour.
A nasty-looking injury to Chris Richards did not help Palace as they battled to maintain their clean sheet. Jesus continued to threaten for Arsenal, again testing Benítez, before the breakthrough finally came. Saka’s corner caused havoc, with William Saliba and Riccardo Calafiori both attacking the ball, before it struck Lacroix and bounced softly into the net.
Game over? Palace’s spirit said otherwise, as did Arsenal’s anxious approach to defending their lead. A Palace set-piece set alarm bells ringing, with Guéhi taking the match to a shoot-out after Arsenal had failed to clear the ball.
All shoot-outs require heroes and for Arsenal it was Kepa, who stopped Lacroix’s effort just as it began to feel like the night would never end.
[Source: Daily Telegraph]
